Is there a way to get a LCD cable?

[asimov-solensan]

I read several times that no cables are available, and dragonshop deon't even lists them.

My pandora just got permanent PTOD. I was expecting this sooner or later and I was praying to get a pyra before it happened, well, bud luck.

So, anyone knows if there is a way to get this LCD cable? I already replaced it and have all the tools at home.

 

[levi]

dragonshop deon't even lists them.

???

But yeah, they've been out of stock for months now as I recall. I think the only real way to do it these days is to buy a second hand pandora on ebay and frankenstein the hell out of it.

 

[Eight Bit]

Orrr... All the drawings are available... No clue what it might cost but it's possible to have your own made.

If you are, please make 2 extra for me as ED seems to be ignoring pleads for more LCD cables?

 

[asimov-solensan]

As I feared I'm screwed.

 

[Linux-SWAT]

We can ask @EvilDragon about a possible batch order.

 

[EvilDragon]

MOQ is 3000pcs, price per cable is 15 EUR.
So once someone donates 45k EUR, I'm happy to produce more cables.

We COULD try to find a different company that could produce it cheaper with a lower MOQ, but you know how many tries we had to get a material that has a long lifetime.

I should have 200 more cables in stock, but the last production run had a production issue, so I received 200 less.
These are missing now :/

The problem is that it's a flex cable with populated parts, which makes things VERY expensive.
Pyras LCD cable is just 2 EUR each, so I could produce 3000 for 6000 EUR, which is a bit less than 45k.

 

[Farox]

I think we never see some lcd cable replacement...with this prices, but if you manage to find a company i'll order one or two for sure.

 

[levi]

Yes, we won't likely see a new internal cable for our 9 year old handhelds. But at least you can buy a new power adaptor for your 35 year old colecovision.

 

[Eight Bit]

Pyras LCD cable is just 2 EUR each, so I could produce 3000 for 6000 EUR, which is a bit less than 45k.

What about stocking up some cables without the needed components and make it solder yourself? Is that viable?
[doublepost=1556056481,1556056173][/doublepost]Or is there a way to just exchange the bottom part of the cable with a pair of scissors and some sort of flex cable extender? Dunno... just brainfarting
[doublepost=1556056729][/doublepost]

 

[levi]

I don't know off the top of my head how many pins there are on the Pandora's LCD cable, but I'm pretty sure there are a lot more than the 8 or so shown in that video.

It's something like 33 pins I reckon; 24 LCD data lines, hsync and vsync, a pixel clock, a display enable line, audio L R and ground, backlight power and ground.

Edit: Found it on page 5 of the schematics; it's a 51 pin part actually; take my 33 estimate and add three system grounds, a spare audio ground, an extra VCCs, two LCD 5V lines, a reset line, a spare line, three lines for an I2C connection, two lines for an odd LED and four lines for the touchscreen sensor. 51 lines in less than 10mm, meaning a pitch of about 200microns, I think.

 

[Linux-SWAT]

Ah crap :^/
I never thought 3000 new cables were produced. Plus the ancient ones, that's a lot...
We have to find a solution.
Cheaper cables will tear out, but will be easier to produce.

 

[levi]

If enough people wanted to keep their Pandora running, it might make sense to add another connector on the existing cable where it has all of the components on it and where the speakers plug in, so that only the bit you curl and put inside the hinge can be replaced assuming the rest of it hasn't failed (and in my experience, it doesn't).

It's rather late now for me to be proposing design changes like this, and you'd probably need a lot more than 3000 orders at 15 EUR to make that happen, but eh, I can dream.

 

[pengo]

Would the current company that produces the Pyra cables also be able to produce the Pandora cables? Is this the same company requesting the MOQ of 3000pcs at 15 EUR each?

 

[EvilDragon]

Yes, it's the same company.

 

[pengo]

Thank you ED. I did a little searching and came across a post in an electronics forum about a company called "WellPCB" that also produces PCB flex cables. They seem to have some positive reviews regarding price and quality.

Their site states minimum order of 30, I wonder what price they would quote for a small quantity of Pandora cables? Can potentially be beneficial as an option for production and also hopeful users who are awaiting a replacement for their Pandora.

 

[Binky]

MOQ is 3000pcs, price per cable is 15 EUR.
So once someone donates 45k EUR, I'm happy to produce more cables.

This seems like a prime opportunity for a crowdfunding-like scheme, and for imposing a MOQ on the end customers.

For example, if I could pre-order a pack of three LCD cables for 50EUR, to be paid once 899 other people had done likewise, I would - since it would ensure the continued operation of an expensive, rare and useful device.

It would also turn a number of pandora-shaped bricks into working machines again. That has to be worth 50EUR!

 

[mamemaniac]

This company seems a good choice as minimum order quantity is not requested in most cases:

http://www.quadrangleproducts.com

 

[EvilDragon]

The problem is that some of the parts (most probably the connector) has a high MOQ.

 

[Linux-SWAT]

MOQ or not, we can't let the Pandora die !

 

[Eight Bit]

The problem is that some of the parts (most probably the connector) has a high MOQ.

Isnt there a way to replace just the broken part of the cable with some extender or something? It's not necessary to replace all the components if those are still good... I noticed there are some connector boards but I don't know how easy it would be to strip a flex cable so that it can be inserted in one of those...